Uninvited
by Imbelossien
Summary: [ NejiSasu ] An unfortunate slight. In all unlikelihood, a simple recovery is made more complicated and strangers teach each other to see. Fifth chapter up.
1. Taking Responsibility

**UNINVITED  
Prologue: Taking Responsibility  
**_in which clan strength is questioned, and decisions are made. _

- story occurs outside of canon; it would be best if one read up until the timejump happens though, as I may be referring to incidents pertaining to those chapters. Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi, that crazy genius, and this is only a poor fanfic by a starstruck fan.

- this contains implied yaoi, which means two guys paired up with each other. While there isn't any overt action, the implications are clear, and are intended, to make the story work. Please do us both a favor and NOT read if you're squeamish with this. And I _ do_ know how rare the occurrence of the NejiSasu fanperson in the fandom today, but here's to hoping it'll reach some anyway. ;

* * *

"You _do _understand why you, of all the other clans of the Leaf, have been called to this duty, don't you?"

The Fifth's sharp voice reminded him of the predicament at hand, and with a mental sigh he carefully directed his attention back to the stern-looking woman in front of him. "Yes, Hokage-sama. However, if you may not mind me asking, why must the term be indefinite?"

A smirk made its way to Tsunade's face, giving her an overall sly look. "I would enumerate a dozen assets your kind has in this sort of situation, but I'm sure both of us know what I have to say and thus I need not say it. However, let me remind you of the situation: we have retrieved the last of the Uchiha children and he is now lying, all the worse for wear, in the intensive care unit of the hospital. His physical injuries are nothing that cannot be healed given a couple of weeks of medical attention, but the mutations brought about by the curse seal Orochimaru left the boy are gone."

She leaned forward, resting her cheek on her hand. "But as you now know his chakra highways aren't quite… 'cleansed' yet, so to speak, and this will take more than the typical medic nin ministrations. Your kind do this sort of thing almost methodically, I'm told; thus it is to you that I entrust the therapy of the Uchiha brat."

He frowned a little at that, ages-old clan pride bristling a bit even under the command of the mighty Hokage. "My house has several noteworthy medic nins to its name, Hokage-sama, and I am sure they will attend to the Uchiha to the utmost. However—"

"However, as we all know, he was hand-picked by Orochimaru himself, to be his 'vessel', and thus we may assume that the bastard slowly 'moved house' so to speak, by slowly transfusing his chakra into the boy, through the three-year span," Tsunade's eyes darkened at the thought, familiar with the ways her former teammate performed his ghastly inversions of the healing jutsu taught to medic nin.

It was a day of much grief on the one hand; newly-made chuunin had not lived to see their next mission, experienced jounin had suffered from massive chakra poisoning and the remnants of negative chakra purged from the body by painful healing jutsu hung in the room like so much wasted breath.

On the other hand, there was also cause for rejoicing. Naruto managed to bring home his errant teammate Sasuke, by now almost unrecognizable in the horrendous mutations the curse seal in its advanced level had wrought him. It had been a gruesome fight, which drained both boys and devastated the Hidden Village of Sound, so much so that only three days after the fight had been concluded, a council was called to decide the standing of the hidden villages, particularly that of the Otogakure. By then there had been no solid community left to be called a "village" much less a "clan", and thus the records had to be set straight.

"The Sharingan is a valuable asset to the Leaf," she mused aloud, immediately noticing the very subtle dilation of her guest's almost-invisible pupils. "Orochimaru very nearly succeeded in using it against us." She stared at the clan head seated across her pointedly.

His jaw tightened as the full implications of what the Hokage had said dawned on him. "You are asking my house to monitor and contain this…this Uchiha boy. In the event that something goes wrong, and a part of Orochimaru is strong enough to override the boy's conscience as it did then."

"Because no other house is strong enough to do so," she finished for him. "That is why the tenure is indefinite. Surely you hold no grudge against a house that has been, for the last eight years, non-existent and out of commission, do you?" There was a slight mocking tone to her voice; Tsunade always found inter-clan grudges incredulous, especially if these grudges were maintained by the most inane of reasons.

For his part, he had respected the Uchiha clan as worthy equals and dutiful shinobi. He would have gladly accepted the request—no, the _demand_—imposed upon him, had personal circumstances not been too glaring to dismiss.

"No, Hokage-sama," he replied. "And I am quite sure that had the situations been reversed, the Uchiha would do what I must as well."

"They would have, indeed!" Tsunade leaned back against her leather chair. She kept her gaze level. "I expect you to put aside your familial troubles as of the moment, Hyuuga Hiashi, messy and complicated as they may seem."

He flinched at the knowing look his superior cast his way. But of course the Hokage would know everything. He nodded his assent, however, because he was a man of his word, and he had promised to house the prodigal Leaf shinobi.

"Understood, Hokage-sama. He shall be kept under close watch. I will personally see to it that the medic nin in my family attend to the Uchiha boy as his regimen demands it."

The Fifth broke to a crooked smile. "It doesn't really matter whether you put him in the Main House or in one of the Branch House buildings. And you needn't go to such pains, Hiashi-san; every other day a team will pay a visit to the Uchiha brat and implement his rehabilitation. What you _can _do is to oversee that this is followed. Although…" she paused thoughtfully for a quick moment before adding, "it would be good if he doesn't have visitors save for the medical team, until further notice, and that you would assign to him a sort of…loose watchman, or a monitor." The buxom Hokage leaned forward thoughtfully. "He is unstable in mind, body, and spirit, the Uchiha brat, and to see the faces that could only bring him painful memories will only do more harm than good." A flicker of sadness crossed Tsunade's face, quickly replaced by her usual ironic smirk. "Besides, you would _not_, in good honor, deprive an orphan and a homeless shinobi of a place to stay in, would you?"

Hiashi rose to leave, bowing low before the Hokage in the old way. "I shall make preparations, Hokage-sama. The Uchiha shall be given protection and aide, and I shall be answerable to his welfare until such time as seen fit for the boy to…move to his own quarters."

There was a pause before Tsunade broke out into harsh laughter. "Oh, so polite. Very well then. Expect him in the early evening; currently the chakra surgeons are still correcting major curse diffusions in his highway. I am counting on you, Hyuuga Hiashi."

He left the office more troubled than when he had entered it. Truth be told, his reasons were rather petty, and the presence of the Uchiha would only strain particular ties that he had been working to mend within his family.

But this was a duty to the village, and it was, albeit on a grander scale, a comrade-to-comrade call for assistance; and it would be a sorry day in all of history if the Hyuuga, strongest clan of the Hidden Leaf, could not step up to this task because it was busy tripping itself up on its own feet.

He would certainly put the boy amongst the Branch Family's quarters. It was actually a major compliment, this task assigned to his family, and deep in the recesses of his heart, pride welled. If indeed they were to protect the boy against the fugitives after him, he had to ensure measures to protect his family against the boy as well.

_It is like erecting double walls_, he thought. _Which serve not only to protect us from the plausible threat of the Uchiha boy's infected body, but which will also isolate us from each other—as if the house stratifications weren't enough already._

A family meeting would have to be called later in the evening, of course, but right now, he had to appoint a stand-in who would serve as his 'eye' so to speak. He knew where to find the one person he knew he could count on given the situation. Hiashi only hoped that he would make his point clear without having to unnecessarily open up old wounds.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

(1) I'm operating outside canon for the first time, but it's not an AU. So this will go as slowly or as quickly as the actual canon progresses, as I'd rather operate in-canon (i.e. taking ambiguous facts from characters' pasts, etc. and using it to my own ends XD ).

(2) I love the Hyuuga. They are my First Family where Konoha's concerned. Comments are welcome, and suggestions as well.


	2. Dynamic Meditation

**UNINVITED  
II: Dynamic Meditation  
**_in which Neji receives a request._

- story occurs outside of canon; it would be best if one read up until the timejump happens though, as I may be referring to incidents pertaining to those chapters. Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi, that crazy genius, and this is only a poor fanfic by a starstruck fan.

- this contains implied yaoi, which means two guys paired up with each other. While there isn't any overt action, the implications are clear, and are intended, to make the story work. Please do us both a favor and NOT read if you're squeamish with this. And I _do_ know how rare the occurrence of the NejiSasu fanperson in the fandom today, but here's to hoping it'll reach some anyway. ;

* * *

Team Gai had spent most of the morning in what their teacher called "dynamic meditation."

Despite its rather outrageous name, it was a pretty solid system of chakra channeling that Gai had helped each one of them adapt to, in accordance to their specialties.

Lee, for example, regulated a steady flow of chakra as he bent himself into almost inhuman angles, testing the flexibility of his muscles and the versatility of his bones. It was a fascinating yoga-type exercise to watch, the concentration in the young shinobi's face apparent as he held a particular difficult pose.

Tenten, for her part, whipped about with a birch _bo_, perching herself precariously on singular wooden blocks. Each block measured some four to five feet off the ground, around several short inches wide. These were arranged in a circle, allowing her to focus her chakra into the simultaneous movement of the longstaff and into her feet, as she quickly switched positions from pole to pole, hopping from one to the other whilst keeping up with the exercise pace and keeping her balance.

They weren't very difficult to locate. Despite the largeness of the practice grounds, and despite the fact that they were, quite essentially, _meditating_, their teacher was busy cheering them on.

"That's it, Lee, _twist_ those bones of yours and render them like rubber! Remember that is the gift of youth—adaptability and flexibility!"

Hiashi watched them quietly from where he stood, shaking his head slightly. This was probably a more rigorous sort of 'meditation' than it seemed at first, especially with Maitou Gai hollering his encouragement every so often, as the younger shinobi had to forcibly shut off the loud shouts directed at them every few minutes.

"Tenten, let the staff act as your third foot! All weapons are extensions of a weapons-master's body. As the leaves that rustle in the summer wind are one with the branch and the tree that holds them, so must you be one with your weapons!"

It was generally very difficult to take Maitou Gai seriously. However surprising as it would seem though, there _was_ some convoluted wisdom to the man's words, often smothered in superfluous speech and an almost nonsensical gibberish that was so characteristic of Gai.

"Neji! You must feel the metal without touching it! Extend your chakra onto your object!"

From the corner of Hiashi's eye he saw his nephew. Upside-down under a high branch, Neji sat cross-legged, eyes closed in concentration. His hands faced each other, fingers splayed out and twitching ever-so-slightly. In the small distance between his palms, two very sharp kunai spun in opposing directions (rather like two frenzied hands of a clock) kept suspended and rotating by a constant flow of chakra. Only a couple of hairs' breadth separated the sharp tips from Neji's exposed fingers, so that the slightest miscalculation would nick the flesh ever so slightly.

Hiashi mentally applauded the eccentric jounin teacher; he had designed exercises that fit each of his students' specialties very well. He was quite sorry to have to interrupt what they were doing so well, but he had very important matters to attend to. Soundlessly, he approached the quartet, keeping himself hidden from view.

"Hyuuga-dono," Gai greeted, as soon as he got close enough for the jounin teacher to detect his subtle presence. "It is a lovely day in the late spring to find you walking in the practice grounds. What brings you here?" It was all a matter of formality, of course; both men knew why Hiashi was here.

"I wish to speak with Neji for a bit, if you do not mind, Gai-sensei," he requested in a low voice. Without turning his head Hiashi could see his nephew's face twitch slightly in surprise; the boy had seen him. "It is… of utmost importance."

"Of course, Hyuuga-dono," Gai intoned. Then, in his loud voice, he addressed his team. "Everyone! Your efforts for the morning merit a recess. A shinobi cannot function on an empty stomach. As it is nearing lunchtime, our mission is to keep the harmonious flow of our chakra by feasting on good, healthy food!" He posed exuberantly. "Who is up for a bowl of ramen or two?"

"That's _not_ healthy food," Tenten pointed out, jumping down from her perch and laying her staff aside. "And I'm sure, at this hour, the Ichiraku will be full. I suggest we—"

"YES GAI-SENSEI!" Lee cried out. "And I shall finish three bowls in thirty seconds else I shall run a hundred laps around the Academy Oval on my hands!"

"Then, _I_ must finish _ four_ bowls in _twenty_ seconds, or I will run _three hundred_ laps on _one hand!_"

"YOSH!"

"Good grief, both of you, it's just _lunch _you know. Neji, won't you be coming along?" Tenten called up to him.

The two whirring kunai wobbled from their axes, and whispered against the tip of Neji's fingers. "I haven't reached my one million one thousand and one hundredth spin yet, but you all go on ahead." He kept his eyes closed, but Hiashi knew Neji was looking at him questioningly.

"Alright, but if you don't join us in thirty minutes we're bringing you food, okay?"

They watched as the three made their way out of the practice grounds and to the street towards the Ichiraku, with Lee and Gai gesticulating colorfully about the various challenges they set up against each other, and Tenten shaking her head and snickering. Stillness settled in the glade then, restful and easy.

"They are a good team," Hiashi murmured out loud. "No, don't, continue with what you are doing," he chided Neji, as the younger shinobi made to stop and to properly face the head of his clan. "It is an interesting exercise. Perhaps a modification of it will suit Hanabi and the younger children very well. It teaches excellent chakra control."

A very faint emotion flashed across Neji's face in an instant. The Hyuuga were a very stern kind, and compliments were either implied in silence, or in the most meager of words and the most indirect gestures. Even more so between different House members.

"You are all recovering very well, given the month-long tenure that has lapsed after that big fight," Hiashi began. "It has certainly resulted in a big political mess, but the Council of Five will have their last two meetings at the end of the week. We are fortunate to have powerful allies such as the Sand on our side."

He was careful to pick his words. The boy was exceptionally perceptive, and could predict conversations and small situational outcomes based on words and bodily affectations. It required subtlety that was a skill to be earned, and not inherited.

There was silence for the briefest moment. "Is Gai-sensei training you all for an upcoming mission?" Hiashi asked.

The twin kunai continued to whirr in their axis between Neji's fingers. "There will be an upcoming mission two days from now, or so I've gathered," he said carefully. "Bodyguarding the Fire Country delegates who will represent the country in the more bureaucratic meetings among non-shinobi."

"Is this the one that will be held in Tea Country?"

"Yes, uncle. A B-rank mission."

The older Hyuuga thought about it for a moment. "Is this something particularly important?"

Neji inclined his head. "I can excuse myself if you wish, uncle. They are a good team, after all." His lip twitched.

Hiashi hid a smile. _Perceptive indeed, and straight to the point._ "Yes, request a leave from your team. Your duty will be to the village this time, specifically to the House of Hyuuga. _Both _houses."

The sharp projectiles he was spinning between his hands increased their speed ever so slightly. "Is there… is there a danger?" Neji asked, brows furrowed.

_He is no doubt thinking of _ that_ time_, Hiashi observed, and wondered (as he did every so often) what would have become of the boy had his father not taken on such an obligatory sacrifice. "No, Neji. Nothing of the sort you are thinking," he said quietly, and the boy visibly relaxed.

Another silence announced itself. Only the humming of Neji's kunai and the occasional forest bird taking flight could be heard.

"This is," Hiashi began again, "however, something akin to a one-man mission."

A soft hissing noise. Hiashi glanced up to see Neji gritting his teeth, still intent on his exercise. His left index finger however, bled from a nick. For someone who knew the boy, it wasn't hard to guess that he was now quite excited about the proposition. Well. Let him enjoy it for the moment.

"It helps you to control your chakra fully, eh?" It was a reprimand, and Neji took it, head bowing slightly in embarrassment. "Well, keep at it, because this is precisely what will be asked of you."

He turned to leave, paused, and continued. "You are on your nine thousandth mark?"

"Eight and five hundred," Neji answered, voice edging.

Hiashi nodded. "After your five millionth turn, take your leave. I shall have all you need prepared in your room." Thus the older Hyuuga disappeared, leaving Neji vexed and alone with his slighted pride and his cut finger, ignoring lunch, ignoring the small trickle of blood, and ignoring his team, who had fussed about him the moment they returned.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

(1) Neji's exercise is particularly complicated because apart from having to control his chakra, he would have to segregate part of it and make it spin in the opposite direction of his natural chakra spiral (I'm taking loosely from Jiraiya's explanation of every person's "natural chakra spiral"). There would be less than a quarter of an inch's distance between his hands and the kunai. Also, he is sitting upside down on a branch, thus forcing him to segregate yet a _smaller_ portion of his chakra to keeping him stuck there without having all the blood rush to his face. To maintain oneself in that position (kunai and all) would mean one must achieve some sort of steady chakra outflow, and intense concentration.

(2) I would imagine it to be one great war, taking Orochimaru down. So much so that the 5 greatest Kages have to converge. And the Ichibi-Kazekage is quite all right, thank you very much. :P

(3) Comments and suggestions are welcome. ; Please leave a note if you thought it wasn't too bad (I hope XD).


	3. An Unfortunate Slight

**UNINVITED  
III: An Unfortunate Slight  
**_in which Neji receives his "mission"_

- story occurs outside of canon; it would be best if one read up until the timejump happens though, as I may be referring to incidents pertaining to those chapters. Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi, that crazy genius, and this is only a poor fanfic by a starstruck fan.

- this contains implied yaoi, which means two guys paired up with each other. While there isn't any overt action (...yet!), the implications are clear, and are intended, to make the story work. Please do us both a favor and NOT read if you're squeamish with this. And I _do_ know how rare the occurrence of the NejiSasu fanperson in the fandom today, but here's to hoping it'll reach some anyway. ;

* * *

Sakura watched apprehensively from behind the glass as the three medic nin carefully handled the tubes and the seal-blanket, preparing to transfer into the improvised gurney the body of her beloved teammate.

In her agitation she had barked out reproofs at the three special chuunin, fussing about a slightly tangled IV line here, a clumsily juxtaposed sealing kanji there. She could not help but be extremely worried, and she had cause to be as well. Tsunade had only agreed for her to 'oversee' the preparations made to the transferring bed, strictly forbidding her to much less _touch_ its most fragile passenger.

"What is this 'I don't understand' coming from you? Do you know how extremely sensitive he is now with his chakra system held open?" The Fifth had scolded her earlier, as she begged to be allowed to care for the comatose Uchiha. "The poisons must be purged from his system, because they have seeped in too deep. He has to be kept stable; the sudden aura of a very familiar person which would normally trigger an emotional response would ruin this equilibrium. Do not tell me you do not understand!"

Sakura sighed at the memory, twisting the hem of her medic apron anxiously.

"Put in an extra saline pack, for the love Shodai," she snapped into the speaker phone, hearing her voice echo mechanically inside the room. "And put the talismans where he cannot reach for them. There, there. _There,_ by the foot of the bed." Wordlessly, a tall tattooed medic nin moved to comply.

Tsunade had specifically named her, Naruto, Kakashi, Iruka-sensei and the entire Team 10 as "off-limits". They were to stay away from Uchiha Sasuke, as far away as the next room, and they were to mask their aura best they could. The only people allowed to handle the boy were anonymous medic nin, and the Fifth herself.

_So much so that he has to be put away in a strange place for the duration of his recovery_, Sakura thought bitterly, eyes scanning the scene before her, looking for the slightest mistake.

"Sakura-chan, it's fine. The medic nin are doing their best."

This snapped Sakura, and she whirled around and spat, "_Oh, and you think _I _am not? That is _Sasuke-kun _in there and—_" She bit back on the rest of the sentence however, at the wince in the other person's face.

She had not meant to sound so harsh but it could not be helped.

Beside her, heavily bandaged, Naruto came up on his wheelchair. He too leaned slightly forward so he could see what was going on inside the room.

"Sorry," she said more calmly. "Why are you here?"

"The same reason _you_ are, Sakura-chan," Naruto replied, and then fell silent.

This did not let up Sakura's anxiety, so she gritted out, "You're not supposed to be here, you know. You're supposed to be resting. In your room."

"I know," her blonde teammate replied calmly. There was a weary undertone in his voice that Sakura could not quite name. "But I want to see how they're going to take care of Sasuke." Bruised lips curved upward slightly in a pained grin. "Damn guy always needs to be taken care of anyway."

"_You're_ not looking all too keen yourself! I shall call for your nurse—"

"Don't, Asura-sempai's off to Ichiraku."

She blinked at him in disbelief. "You. You _ bribed _him?"

Naruto absently scratched his cheek with a finger. "Well him, Sora-sempai and Miyami-san," he said matter-of-factly, naming the three medics responsible for his well-being. "I had coupons enough for two, and Miyami-san says she doesn't eat a lot."

"Oh Naruto. You are a _complete_ idiot."

"…heh. I guess."

She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. Since recovering from _his_ own trauma, a little over a week ago (he healed more quickly than Sasuke, due to the Kyuubi in his body), Naruto had been strangely silent. She had to admit that the boy's babble was comforting to hear in the direst situations, because he somehow echoed everyone else's fears, and by voicing out his apprehensions he unconsciously helped others get over theirs as well. To have him as still and as silent like this…

"Don't tell me _you_ aren't worried too!" She glared at him balefully, hoping to provoke him to speech. "They're taking him _away_ from the hospital, to some unknown retreat. And how are we to know that such a retreat is safe? How are we to know that Sasuke-kun will be in good hands, that he will _heal_ safely?" She balled her fist, agitated. "I can't believe shishou kept quiet about her plans for Sasuke—"

Naruto mused for a long moment. "Sasuke will be fine," was all he said, but the conviction in his tone was solid. "I trust them." He nodded towards the medical personnel in the room.

Sakura frowned. "I don't understand you. How could—"

"Looks like he's ready."

Sakura turned her attention back to the room. A fourth medic nin, in the long, white gown of a chakra surgeon, entered from an inner side door and took one very quick run-through with the preparations. Something inside Sakura soured at how the surgeon could be so close to Sasuke, how she could freely, as she was now doing, retrace the kanji seals etched in blood around the unconscious boy's face.

Immediately after she had finished, the first three finally buckled everything in place, and proceeded to wheel him out of the room.

She was about to open her mouth to retort, to complain, _anything_ to delay the moving of Sasuke, when Naruto turned slightly and smiled, addressing the surgeon who had now come out of the room and was standing behind Sakura.

"Yo, doc."

"He-hello, Naruto-kun, Sakura-san."

At the familiar voice, Sakura turned in surprise. Slowly pulling down the surgeon's mask that obscured her face, Hyuuga Hinata offered the pair a shy, uncertain smile.

"How's the bastard?" Naruto asked casually, the familiar lilt of mischief in his words. "He giving you trouble? He's trouble enough awake, heh."

Hinata shook her head vigorously. "Oh no, no, Sasuke-kun is cooperating. For someone with such a high level of infection, he's doing amazingly well. Not as well as we would all like to think," she added quickly, "but it has been only one month and now—now most of the blockages in his chakra highway are clearing out."

She still spoke quietly, but it now carried the confidence of profession. Sakura knew that Hinata, along with a few others, had taken some medical training (because the presence of a medic was mandatory in a team), but she had _not_ expected the once fearfully shy girl to attain the level of _surgeon._ She had not even heard of Hinata save in passing, and she had been working in the shinobi hospital in and out for the past three years now, as Tsunade's apprentice.

Naruto scrunched his face. "Is this a good thing?"

Hinata glanced into the room before answering. "It is, and to an extent it is not. That is why he must be transferred to a place where he can rest, undisturbed, among people he has not had contact with prior to the—the incident." Hinata almost reverted to her old habit of twiddling fingers. "Even here, in the hospital, it holds…it holds memories for him. And… and the aura of different people might confuse him and thus worsen his state.

"The physical surgeons did very well," she continued, and nodded at Sakura. "Sakura-san may even know most of them. Hokage-sama herself monitored several sessions. While his body is back to normal, it will now be his non-physical properties that will need healing."

Images of Sasuke rampaging in a deadly level-3 curse mode flashed through Sakura's mind, and a sob almost hitched in her throat. Pale eyes slid in her direction before quickly averting away.

"That—that is why he'll have to go under retreat. Well-protected, of course. Hokage-sama has informed us of the possible dangers. Please don't worry. I myself shall be present when he undergoes rehabilitation."

Sakura watched in growing dismay as the figure in the gurney was slowly moved toward the inner side door that Hinata had used to enter the room. It was not that she did not trust Hinata ; in fact, she was _grateful_ to have her care for Sasuke but…

"I don't even know where he is going to," she murmured quietly.

The pale-eyed surgeon laid a hand on Sakura's shoulder, and gestured for both of them to look back into the room. Hinata then reached for the button of the speaker.

"Yukio-san, Inoue-san, Ryuko-san," she called out, "Please proceed to the teleportation area and wait for me there. Please make sure nobody else is in the room, and proceed to draw the seals for teleportation."

All three medic nin in the room stopped for a moment, and turned fully to where Hinata stood.

"Yes, Hinata-sama."

It was then that Sakura realized that the three she had been so callously ordering around all had the same almost-white eyes of Hinata beside her. Realization crept in, and suddenly she understood the entire situation perfectly. In the back of her mind, she thanked her shishou for having such foresight.

Naruto only smirked knowingly. "You just tell me if he makes trouble, ne, Hinata? Sasuke-bastard… man, I'd _ love_ to get a tour of your place someday. Iruka-sensei says it's the biggest compound in the whole of Konoha. Are those _castles_ you live in, Hinata?" He was starting to prattle again, a comforting sound.

_He noticed_, thought Sakura, and immediately felt guilty for exploding at him. Naruto knew all along, which was why he acted so confident about the move. _I'm sorry yet again, Naruto._ She felt strangely drained now that her nervousness had left.

"Well," she started, breaking in, "I suppose it's all good now. It's _your_ turn to go back to your room, Naruto, unless you want me to drag you there by force. And don't you dare think I _won't_ beat you up to get you back in." She ignored Naruto's protests as she made to wheel him back into his quarters down the hallway.

She paused. "Hinata-san, thank you for… everything." She bowed in gratitude to the pale-eyed girl before her, not knowing what else to say and how else to say it.

"I will do my best Sakura-san," Hinata replied, and watched the pair make their way down the hallway bickering. Hinata smiled to herself, thinking that perhaps she knew exactly what Sakura was feeling.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

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It was late in the afternoon when Neji had completed his eight millionth spin. By then, the rest of his team had finished with their exercises, and were absently sparring with their sensei.

They left him be, after he refused to acknowledge their fuss, even with Rock Lee making a great show of devouring the ramen they'd bought for him, and Tenten concernedly eyeing two more of his slightly bleeding cuts.

"He is deep in magna-dynamic meditation," Gai reasoned seriously. "He is expanding his youthful spirit."

At this Lee had stared up, in awe of the philosophical explanation, vowing loudly to expand _his_ youthful spirit too, and reach his alpha-magna-supra-dynamic core through vigorous spine bends. Tenten only sighed in defeat and took to her posts once again.

She now stopped in mid-lunge and looked at him questioningly as he slowly walked down the tree from his perch, bending slightly here and there to right his circulation.

"_Someone_ got carried away," she said, grinning.

Gai straightened up from his fighting stance and nodded to his team. "Yosh. Now that all of you have attained dynamic calm, it is now time to talk about the mission." He ducked a flying kick, and reached for a scroll inside of his vest.

Lee yelled victoriously and pumped a fist in the air, performing several more backflips in sheer excitement. "Is this the one you've been training us for, Gai-sensei? Will this involve us twisting to get in tight spaces and dodging dangerous weapons? Would this—" he would have continued, had Tenten not bapped him smartly with the end of her stick.

"Can you just _calm down_ so that sensei can talk about it, Lee?"

They kept at it for a bit, and as Gai brought out the two mission scrolls and laid them out on the ground, he turned and nodded very briefly to Neji. Granting permission to leave. Neji acknowledged this and turned to walk away.

"Then, I'll see you tomorrow."

Both Tenten and Lee turned in surprise to watch their retreating teammate's back.

"But—Neji? Aren't you going to listen to the mission briefing?" Tenten was still eyeing his cut fingers, most of which had now stopped bleeding.

_This is akin to a one-man mission._ It had vexed him terribly, and he could not explain why. It was an exciting prospect, certainly, to be accorded the honor of carrying out a one-man mission (these were rare missions assigned only to trusted nin of ANBU and Hunter level, this much he knew); much less a one-man mission that involved the Hyuuga name.

He had time to think of the possibilities all that afternoon, as he concentrated on spinning the two kunai. It was probably more of a reconnaissance-type of mission, which would probably involve him spying on, and investigating individuals that either threatened the house from the outside (non-family members for example, who dealt with the Hyuuga closely), or investigating his _own_ family members, who threatened to tarnish the name by engaging in questionable deals.

He had more or less settled for the possibly of it being an inter-house situation; he _knew_ his family, large and (to an extent) bureaucratic as it was. He knew that despite the bitterness that still lingered in the sentiments of his Branch House kin, they were still loyal to the house itself. Hiashi-sama, being the clan head, would have known anyway, and would have put a stop to it himself.

"That is why he is leaving," Gai replied. He turned to Neji, the somber expression replaced by a flashy smile of encouragement. "Go, my pupil, and hold your youthful fire true! Perform exemplarily in your mission!" The jounin struck his Nice Guy Pose.

_They are a good team. _He felt his lip twitch despite himself. "The three of you as well," Neji replied, and so saying, he made a few seals and disappeared in a clap of smoke, willing the teleportation jutsu to carry him to his home.

The Hyuuga compound was the biggest by far in the Konohagakure. It housed seven families, two of the first degree (those families were Hinata's and Neji's), three of the second degree, and two of the third. The First Family lived in the four-storey pseudo-tower in the middle of the compound, while the four slightly smaller structures flanked it on it four corners. Neji's family, and several of the second degree family members lived in the North house. The rest were loosely distributed among the other three. Each sub-house had a large courtyard at the center, where members liked to practice in the early hours of the morning.

Neji now entered the North gate, and was slightly disturbed to see that the medic nin were stationed in idle attention near the stairwell. He had not heard of anyone birthing; perhaps one of the children, while training, wounded himself, or herself badly, he reasoned.

He knew Yukio and Ryuko; they were Branch members of the second degree, quiet kids who had incurred the favor of many of the Main House. He only knew Inoue because he once lived in the North house, in the small room on the first floor, a long time ago.

They now eyed him respectfully as he passed them by, and made for the stairwell that led to the second floor. The vexed sensation that pervaded his senses all day long amplified, and he unconsciously felt the cuts on his fingers in agitation.

_But surely they have nothing to do with this mission Uncle has for me_, he thought. As he ascended the stairs that led to the corridor, he could feel all three eyes of the medic nin follow him curiously.

_Do they _know_ of this?_ he wondered, as he walked down the hallway to his room.

He passed by an open door, and from the corner of his eye saw his uncle seated, back towards him, deep, it seemed, in the middle of a solitary tea ceremony.

His uncle's telltale presence snapped his reserve, and Neji strode now, the bad feeling rising with every step like so much troubled chakra.

He felt her presence even before he saw her come out of his room.

"Hinata-sama?" he called out.

She turned, jumping slightly at the tone of his voice, and nearly dropped the large medical kit she was holding. "Ne-Neji-niisan," she greeted a little shakily, taking in his somber face. "I—I was just leaving, I was just-just making sure everything was okay, because I—I'm the only one who knows how to fix such things—" Her pale eyes shifted for the briefest moment before she directed them again at him.

Neji hastily reigned in his emotions and managed a calm nod of acknowledgment. "I am sorry, Hinata-sama," he amended. "I must admit, I am quite keyed up with the prospective of this mission. Please excuse me. Is everything ready?" He knew she was sensitive to chakra emissions, since she was, after all, a surgeon.

Hinata only looked at him questioningly before slowly nodding. "The—the set-up is complete, Neji-niisan. Your room couldn't have been more perfect, as it is quite compatible with his much-depleted air-based chakra and—"

"_His!_"

Hinata yelped as Neji pushed her aside, and slid open the door of his room. He sucked in a breath as he beheld the sight, gaze centering on the new occupant settled in the low white mattress-bed.

The sealing blanket draped in and over the bed, and kanji ran like elongated spiders over the bandages that wrapped around pale limbs. Two IV tubes dripped life into semi-listless veins that throbbed under the small pressure. Smaller tubes ran under pale fingers, needles inserted into the skin below the joints. Each ended with a character from the kujikiri mantra; purification tubes filtered out the chakra that entered and left the body's chakra system.

A smaller sealing blanket covered the patient's face from the nose up, obscuring the eyes and the upper part of the face. It was held firmly in place by hooks in the edges that fitted into small metal snags on the mattress made for that purpose. A small altar torch blazed blue flame over the victim's head, flanked by two earthen bowls filled with water.

No mission scrolls and carefully-laid out ninja instruments, ready to be packed for a journey. No debriefing papers and lists of names to investigate, no records for reference that he had all imagined would be waiting for him when he had finished his eight millionth turn.

"What…" He turned slowly to face Hinata, eyes veining around the edges as he finished surveying the scene, "…is _this._"

"That—that is—" Hinata started, casting worried glances at the body in the room behind Neji, more concerned about the now slightly bubbling water in the bowls than of her looming cousin before her.

"That is your mission, jounin."

Hiashi laid a firm hand on his daughter's shoulder. "Hinata, have Shirin-baasan bring up two more spare sets of clothes for our guest, and another spare altar lamp." He said this while watching Neji carefully, as the younger jounin struggled to keep his anger in check.

"Right away, father." She glanced apologetically at her cousin before walking quickly away. Uncle and nephew were left staring at each other; one in angry inquiry, the other in calm scrutiny, as Hinata's soft footfalls echoed and eventually disappeared.

"Neji," Hiashi said finally, ominously, "Step away from that room, and follow me." He didn't wait for an answer, instead stepped away and into the corridor, entering the room Neji saw him in earlier. His nephew was hot on his heels, and as Hiashi calmly seated himself to continue grinding the tea leaves, Neji stood at a respectful distance, struggling to maintain his composure.

"It is no stranger lying in there," Hiashi said at length, carefully setting the nearby pot to a boil.

"I _know_ who it is," Neji replied testily.

"Then that makes things easier," his uncle merely continued, readying two ancient tea cups, gesturing for him to come forward. "I suppose I needn't explain how he came to be there, and why he has fallen into your scope of responsibility either, do I?"

Stiffly, Neji took a seat in front of his uncle, his balled fists not quite relaxing. He inhaled sharply. "He does not deserve this."

He frowned in the memory of four years past, and how several lives were almost lost in that desperate rescue attempt.

"He is a shinobi of the Leaf," Hiashi replied levelly, handling the crushed tea essences.

"He is a _traitor_ to the Leaf," Neji answered.

"Those were his circumstances, and it is not for you to judge," the clan head continued, lifting the steaming pot and tipping it gently against the first cup. "Uchiha Sasuke belongs to a clan that has been deeply rooted in the history of this village. He too is a holder of a Bloodline Limit."

Neji was silent at this, fuming. He understood all too well how precious the presence of an Advanced Bloodline was, especially since the traits particular to a bloodline depended solely on genetics, not training. A village's trump card was the number of bloodlines it had in its name. It was by a lucky streak that they were able to take back the errant shinobi alive, and with him, the Sharingan.

To date, Sasuke was the only remaining member of the Uchiha and the last natural wielder of the Sharingan. While his brother (the similarly errant Itachi) had killed off virtually their entire clan, Sasuke himself sought and eventually dealt with his brother in the three years he had been Orochimaru's understudy.

Now, it seemed, the question of the Sharingan's complete extinction depended on the comatose body resting a few rooms away.

"The Uchiha are an undependable lot," Neji muttered sourly. Irresponsible! The need to excel as an individual only extended insofar as one's abilities contributed to the village strength as a whole. As a family gifted with a bloodline limit, they certainly allowed such selfish motives amongst their members.

Hiashi paused to glance at his nephew before resuming what he was doing, discreetly hiding a smile. He knew exactly what the boy was thinking, but chose to keep his reprimand to himself. He poured for the second cup, and slid it across the floor towards Neji.

"And I trust that the Hyuuga shall never be," was all he said, watching Neji's fist tighten a little before relaxing, the full implications of the statement clear to both of them.

The younger Hyuuga stared hard at the cup steaming before him, indecision apparent. This _was_ akin to a one-man mission, after all. He had been to more difficult field work, hand't he? An irony indeed, that he was now called upon to safeguard the very person whose retrieval, several years earlier, almost cost him his life.

There was a moment's hesitation before Neji finally took the cup, gingerly taking a sip.

_He has grown in maturity_, Hiashi observed, satisfied. Several years ago perhaps, the boy would have done it only through sheer coercion—possibly with the use of outright threat, and then Hiashi would have asked someone to watch over Neji himself.

"I understand the dangers implicit, Hiashi-sama," Neji said. "If this is indeed a mission, you chose a good place to hold it, here in the Branch House." An ironic gleam flashed through his pale eyes.

_Yet still very bitter._ Although the once very vindictive boy had mellowed down after fully understanding what had actually happened between the House's twin sons, there was still a tinge of resentment. It would always be there, Hiashi thought, for as long as there exists the familial divide.

But divisions were always necessary to keep a unit whole. He only allowed a knowing smirk to return that remark. But of course the Uchiha would be situated in a Branch House. Perhaps the only Main House member to have regular contact with the boy would be Hinata, but that was out of necessity; she was a very, very talented chakra surgeon, for her age, and Hiashi was privately ashamed to think that he had always thought his daughter to be weak.

"It is a one-man mission after all," he said. _On the other hand, consider it an honor on your part, Hyuuga Neji._ "You are dealing with the last member of what was once a very formidable clan."

Neji opened his mouth to say something, but Hiashi had already nodded, acknowledging Hinata who stood outside. She padded quietly into the room, and took a seat to her father's left. Hiashi then bowed slightly, signaling the end of the tea ceremony, and stood up.

Neji refused to meet his eye, and Hiashi could sense the boy controlling his apparent distaste of the entire situation.

Wordlessly, he walked past, but just as he was about to leave the room, Hiashi said, "I hope you realize. To the Uchiha, you are all the Hyuuga."

Hiashi did not need to see behind him how Neji reacted. He knew where the proud straightening of the shoulders and the slight upward tilt of the chin came from.

_He is you in the flesh, Hizashi. One day…_ And then he stopped. There would be another time for other matters.

The clan head descended the stairs, quite satisfied with how it had turned out, while in the room, Hinata had begun to explain to her cousin the nuances of the rehabilitation.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It was evening when they finally finished. He had asked a lot of questions, much to Hinata's surprise (as she had expected him to only half-listen, to scoff several times, and to leave in a wake of indifference).

Of course, being Neji, he had veiled his questions (most out of curiosity, she noted, although several were out of concern) regarding his impromptu roommate, and how he played a part in all of it.

"You aren't required to stay in at all times, Neji-niisan," Hinata explained. "As far as I know you may take missions, but only those that don't require more than seventy-two hours of being away from the village, travel time included."

"And why must it be in _my_ room?" He sneered slightly. "I understand part of what Hiashi-sama has in mind, but that can't possibly be the only reason, if I am after all allowed to go out for missions."

"There are, in fact, several more reasons, Neji-niisan, most of them pertaining to medical matters." She had unrolled a small floor plan of the North House. "Sasuke-kun's chakra highways are severely blockaded with Orochimaru's energies, thus stopping the natural flow. What is happening now is that his main pathways are opened, to purge it out of him. However, much of _his_ own natural chakra is let out as well."

He let his gaze scan over the room now, as he stood in the doorway, overlooking its unconscious occupant. The Branch House members who lived in the North House with him were all now in the dining hall, leaving the rest of the house immersed in a twilight silence.

She had explained to him how the different chakra-sustaining mediums were put up to coincide with the naturally-occurring chakra flows in his room.

"The placement of your room favors air energies, Neji-niisan," she said, drawing an elemental chart. "You are an air energy yourself, and thus there is enough for Sasuke-kun to draw from. It's a very good coincidence, as most of his air-based chakra was used to take out the biggest blockages, thus depleting his natural reserves.

"The bowls are filled to the brim, and do not react to physical handling, only to chakra handling. Sasuke-kun's water energies are dangerously low as well, and are probably the most reactive." She had looked him square in the face in quiet warning. "Especially from air-based chakra emitted in unregulated amounts."

She was warning him to keep his own chakra rhythms in check. He could not help but think of how timely Gai-sensei had introduced to him his own "dynamic meditation". Irony, it seemed, was Fate's favorite underhand move. Absently, he felt the cuts he'd garnered from the exercise, all reduced to papercuts, thanks to Hinata's insistence.

She had also explained how the rest of the other elements worked in the best juxtaposition for healing. There would be a medic nin who would check in on him during the day, and an entire team would survey him twice a week. It was more of a loose vigil he had to keep on Sasuke, and as all vigils went, it would either result to nothing, or to something very wrong.

He paid close attention to everything, rather like paying attention to a mission briefing: formal, detached, focused. It seemed strange, yet again, to be taking briefings from a lower-ranked ninja, from Hinata of all people, whom he'd hated long before.

It had been quite some time since he felt like killing a fellow Leaf shinobi, and he was glad for it. He had to admit, that it was useless to hate how Fate moved her pieces. Because really, we are given enough to go by, and we pick our own way from there.

But here in the dwindling dusk, where late shadows of trees swaying in the lamplight, it was easy to forget that simple fact. In the dim light, Neji squinted, saw the placid movement of Uchiha Sasuke's blood, and deeper still, the colorful regulation of his ailing chakra system.

Disgust roiled in his mind, for this person who had ruined so many lives simply by existing. _And the worst part is that Uchiha Sasuke does not know it._

_Rather like Hinata-sama,_ he thought in retrospect, but that was a different story altogether. He narrowed his eyes dangerously, as he regarded the sleeping form. He could not _begin_ to count how many people were ruined because of this once-traitor, most of them being his trusted comrades.

Here, in the deepening twilight, watching this last, most obstinate member of one long-lost obstinate clan, Neji found it all too easy to remember how to hate.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

(1) The way the Hyuuga treat chakra, and the way Neji's attacks sound (something something of the Eight Winds) strike me as Kishimoto's take on Feng Shui. So here's my take on Kishimoto's take on Feng Shui, which is Feng Shui-but-**not-**Feng Shui, with the Hyuuga in tow. ; With the great importance the world of Naruto puts on chakra (as a singular life force/ spirit/ _chi_ thing), I'd imagine there'd be a branch of Healing arts specializing on it. I'm not claiming to be good at all that Feng-Shui stuff, but I'm taking liberties off of it (that's why it's FS-but-not ).

(2) Hinata as chakra surgeon came to mind because of that episode where she hands Naruto and Kiba healing ointments. I won't be surprised that she would be very proficient in the field of chakra-healing as her eyes give her an edge to it. I'd like to think that she would be a very efficient, very thorough sort of med-person.

(3) _sealing blankets_ - something very much similar to the one being draped over Kimimaro's face before he got up to join the Sound Four. The altar lamp blazing by his head would be akin to the one that was burning over Chouji's when he was being healed. I personally think Healer Nin are scary people who shouldn't be messed with, after seeing chapter 235.

(4) I'd imagine purging Orochimaru would be similar to purging poison. You have to bleed yourself (as in snakebites for example) or puke your guts out (as in food poisoning) to make sure the poison leaves the body properly. In the process, you've hurled your dinner, and you're several pints too weak to stand or do anything for that matter.

I'd appreciate it muchly if you leave a note. Comments and suggestions are welcome.


	4. A Short Morning Walk

**UNINVITED  
IV: A Short Morning Walk  
**_in which Neji doesn't get his answer._

- story occurs outside of canon; it would be best if one read up until the timejump happens though, as I may be referring to incidents pertaining to those chapters. Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi, that crazy genius, and this is only a poor fanfic by a starstruck fan.

- this contains implied yaoi, which means two guys paired up with each other. While there isn't any overt action (...yet!), the implications are clear, and are intended, to make the story work. Please do us both a favor and NOT read if you're squeamish with this. And I _do_ know how rare the occurrence of the NejiSasu fanperson in the fandom today, but here's to hoping it'll reach some anyway. ;

* * *

He had not moved an inch.

Morning came with faint sunlight, which filtered in through the window over his guest's bed. Outside, the village slowly awoke: the second daylight watch would rotate, and messenger birds would wing over the sky to carry reports from border patrol.

He could hear the compound come alive as well. To give themselves privacy, the Hyuuga placed seals over every room in their houses, disallowing the intrusive ability of the Byakugan. When one attempted to use the Byakugan to see through a room, a painful jolt would shoot through the user's eyes enough to break the hold.

The East House children were awake and ready for school, judging by the sound of small voices breaking the clear morning air. Because they were members of the Branch Family, these children would attend Academy lessons for half the day, to return home and be tutored by older Hyuuga members.

He could hear, from where he sat, the distant flurry of feathers: the aviary must have been opened now, the messenger birds all roused from their perches, the caretaker throwing in their meals for the day: meat for the kites and the smaller owls, bird pellets for the smaller birds.

He had sat in his place since the night before, intently watching the alien body on the bed. Although the sliding door that separated the inner room stood slightly open, and even as the chakra patterns traveling underneath the skin became familiar to him, Neji (who was sitting in the outer room of his chambers) did not once take his eyes off his ward.

To be fair, Uchiha Sasuke had not done anything. The stillness of the morning seemed to weigh upon his prone form, so that each breath was muted, and not a hair rustled in his head. Through Neji's vision, however, the sealing tubes continued to pump chakra in and out of Sasuke's subtlest pressure points.

In and out the faint chakra stream went, filtering oddly-colored energy in (Sasuke's chakra was blue chakra, faint and teal-hued), pumping faintly dark-colored energy out. The inner organs were masterfully restored by the physical surgeons, and Neji had no doubt that the Hokage had, literally, a hand in it as well; Uchiha Sasuke looked normal inside and out.

It was like watching out for the dead.

In the old days, especially in the days of the war, it had happened. Teams took great risk in retrieving the bodies of their comrades who had fallen, to keep the secret of a bloodline or a deliberately altered body part. Teams took each other's life in a dire situation, choosing to commit suicide instead of allowing their bodies to reveal the secrets of the village.

He had heard stories, from his father. He heard stories, _about_ his father.

There was a very slight tap on the main door, and he turned sharply, roused from his reverie. He took one last glance at the body, and, deciding that the chances of Sasuke suddenly getting up and going mad were slim, went to attend to his visitor.

"Good morning, Neji-kun."

A heavily blindfolded man, a little over Neji's height, stood outside. Thick white bandages wrapped around the upper part of his face, obscuring his eyes, and part of his forehead, where the Mark of the Caged Bird was etched faintly. The very subtle lines on his face suggested that the man was a little past his prime, and a faint, long scar peeked down a few inches from the edge of the bandages.

He nodded in greeting as Neji slid the door open quietly.

Neji frowned. It was most unexpected, and he had thought that the transfer of the Uchiha was a secret. Hinata certainly made it clear to him that it was.

It was embarrassing enough as is; he doubted anyone else besides his uncle would look at things in the more "honorable" light, and he certainly did not want the entire clan to know of it.

"Kaminari-aniki?" he muttered in a low voice, stepping out of the room.

The man cocked his head, as if he could see the tension in Neji's face despite the heavy bandages wound over his eyes. "Why Neji-kun. You have not slept." He craned is neck slightly, as if to see into the room, a small, barely perceptible smile twitching his lips. The irony fairly wafted from his tone.

Neji's low jaw clenched. "Did uncle—"

"Hiashi-sama did nothing of the sort," the man replied almost cheerfully, waving the suggestion away with a flippant gesture. "And neither did Hinata-sama. She chose very good assistants, might I add."

Neji made as if to speak again, but was silenced by a twitch of the other man's jaw.

"Come, Neji," the man said levelly, and had the other's eyes been exposed, they would have stared down at him in the knowing look he knew too well. _As if I need to explain_, the tone seemed to say in subtext.

Neji looked away, disgruntled; it was (as it would ever be, he thought) futile to win an argument against his cousin. The older man stepped back, and leaned against the railings that overlooked the inner courtyard.

"A lot of air chakra," he mused, head held high, as if he had the extraordinary ability to sniff the very stuff. "A good choice," he said wryly.

Neji glared at his cousin deeply. He did not need the reminder. He did not need, as it were, the softly chiding tone that Kaminari was casually using, to his expense.

"He can't be within the presence of other people such as Sakura and Naruto," he muttered through grit teeth. "And he cannot stay for long in the hospital. As such, it seems this is the only place he will not—"

"—find traces of unstable memory, yes," Kaminari finished thoughtfully, as if he had read Neji's mind. "I understand completely."

Then, as if a brilliant idea struck him, he broke into a smile.

"Come, Neji-kun. Let us take a walk down the courtyards for a while. I think, it is only fitting you gave Sasuke-kun his privacy, after keeping watch all night." And with a slight smile, the older man turned to walk down the long hallway, towards the staircase.

Neji scowled, hating the enigmatic way he was always led astray, hated how his deepest concerns were articulated in the most casual way possible.

He cast a doubtful look back into the room in deep disquiet before he decided to follow suit.

They were both quiet, when they reached the courtyard, allowing the gravel softly crunching beneath their sandals to ease the air between them. It would always seem strange to Neji, how he could walk beside his cousin like so, as if the latter were a normal, able shinobi, with a good pair of eyes that were, in fact, wounded and quite useless as they were hidden behind the bandages.

It had always been strange to him, how Kaminari, a victim of such terrible irony, could walk beside him now without assistance, as if the man could see as well as he, or any of his other Hyuuga kin.

As if Kaminari weren't blind.

"Chakra burns," Kaminari began softly, and from the corner of his eye Neji saw him scratch absentmindedly at his arm, a phantom pain. "To use chakra so intensely as to hurt yourself. To be hurt, so intensely, by someone else's chakra, so that your system is disrupted, and your inner organs start to fail."

They were quiet again, and in steadily growing light, Neji could see, through his cousin's robes, the long, muted whip-like gashes that ran from the man's shoulder right down to his back. Chakra burns.

Neji never really understood his kinsman, for all the years they had lived, literally, under the same roof. After his father's death, Kaminari had immediately taken the boy under his wing, teaching Neji most of what he knew, the jutsu of the First Family.

The man's blindness and the cause of it was a legend among the Hyuuga children, and even distant relatives never knew the whole story. Many dismissed him, liked to pretend he did not exist; to a clan well-known for its eyes, a blind member was an embarrassment—nevermind that he initially belonged to the Main Branch.

But Neji, after living with and training under his cousin for most of his life, knew that Kaminari's blindness wasn't ordinary, that an unexplained clairvoyance preceded his disability.

Beside him, Kaminari continued. "Did you know that chakra have textures? It is quite interesting. The Yondaime for example, his was a warm, slightly prickly, crackling sort. You'd know it was him a mile away."

"Aniki," Neji said quietly. He did not need to say what he wanted to know.

"—your father, he was an air element like you. Oh, being around him felt like pressing your face against the wind that passes through Minamino Pass." The older Branch member continued as if he had heard nothing.

"Kaminari-aniki," Neji repeated, stopping in his tracks.

There was an audible sigh, before Kaminari turned in Neji's general direction. "Your obstinacy has not left with your rather fatalistic zeal, I see," he started in a slightly sharper tone that made Neji wince inwardly. "And I will not repeat what Hiashi-sama told you yesterday. You want to know the outcome of this 'mission' hmm? Neji-kun."

Neji pursed his lips, feeling like an eight-year old all over again. Since he had noticed his cousin's uncanny ability to hint at, and correctly predict situations, he had always asked about particular events. Sometimes Kaminari jovially let hints slip; he had predicted who Neji would fight in the Chuunin Exam Third stage.

For the briefest moment, a sadness Neji could not quite name crossed Kaminari's face, in the slight downward turn of his mouth; and then it was gone.

"You should be old enough to know it will not matter what I will say, what all this 'Fate' has to do with everything," was the reply. Extending a hand to steer Neji back the path they came, Kaminari continued, "but I do believe our little chat must conclude itself."

He inclined his head a little, as if listening for something, smiled enigmatically for a moment, and continued walking.

"I was talking about chakra, wasn't I? In any case, the Sandaime had a natural air of superiority about him—"

Neji frowned, but followed along, frustrated at his aniki's apparent disinterest in his affairs. There was no use cajoling; he had learned earlier on that when his cousin refused to say anything, nothing else was to be said.

The two slowly made their way back to the North House, even as the sun rose high in Konoha. Outside the family compound, business resumed, and further on outside the village, powerful heads of state converged.

Upstairs in the quiet second floor corridor of the East Wing, the lone occupant of Neji's room twitched a pale wrist feebly.

The altar lamps flickered slightly, and a breeze found its way through the lightly-shuttered window. Feebly, and very slowly, half-open parched lips sucked in air, as if their owner had just surfaced from a deep, dark immersion.

In the clear Konoha morning, Uchiha Sasuke began to slowly awaken.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

(1) Introducing Hyuuga Kaminari. ; He's originally a Main House member, who was cast into Branch House because of his blindness. Why he is blind, I will elaborate on later, but all in due time. I figured the very strict familial management of the Hyuuga would cast down any unimportant member to Branch House. Kaminari would be helpless as he is blind, and a shameful thing for the family to recognize. He'd be like those black horses in the family, the cripple in a family of swordsmen, the dyslexic in a family of poets and writers and orators--only he isn't as incapacitated as many deem him to be. The family thus would rather hide him than recognize him as a representative of the Hyuuga in the Main Family. An OC whose character trait I sketched from Urahara Kisuke's from BLEACH. I wanted to give Neji a father figure after the death of his own.

(2) I don't suppose Neji, for all his genius, can learn the Heavenly Spin and the 64 Hands of Hakke (originally Main House specialties) on his own, raised as he is in the Branch House. I needed to give him a mentor of sorts, a "big brother" (that is what 'aniki' means) who would have been exposed to Main Family jutsu. Neji's genius therefore lies in the fact that, at a very young age, he is able to master such advanced techniques as taught to him by Kaminari. Which is, as one training under Kaminari understands, basically just 87 of figuring it out for yourself.

(3) Sasuke's awake!

I'd appreciate it muchly if you leave a note. Comments and suggestions are welcome.


	5. A Slight Change of Plans

**UNINVITED  
V: A Slight Change of Plans  
**_in which Neji dreams, and several untypical things are done._

- story occurs outside of canon; it would be best if one read up until the timejump happens though, as I may be referring to incidents pertaining to those chapters. Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi, that crazy genius, and this is only a poor fanfic by a starstruck fan.

- this contains implied yaoi, which means two guys paired up with each other. While there isn't any overt action (...yet!), the implications are clear, and are intended, to make the story work. Please do us both a favor and NOT read if you're squeamish with this. And I _do_ know how rare the occurrence of the NejiSasu fanperson in the fandom today, but here's to hoping it'll reach some anyway. ;

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He did not see Kaminari for next six days after their morning conversation. He seemed to have shut himself up in his room on the first floor, coming out only sparely to consult with an inquiring member that _ wasn't_ Neji. Neji suspected the man did it deliberately to frustrate him, to leave him with the tiresome ambiguity of the entire situation.

He often did that, Kaminari: He remembered how, in his younger trainee days, the older Hyuuga would perform a new jutsu once (or twice, if it struck his fancy), and then leave to let Neji, excited, eager and impatient to figure it out for himself.

Training with his cousin never involved physical punishment of the sort; Kaminari knew enough of psychological coercion to allow Neji's furious drive and frustrated desire to be stronger, to do the work.

It did not help that, even after more than a decade, it would feel exactly as it did back then, and Neji knew Kaminari wanted him to figure out his most vexing situation out himself.

It was probably the most inactive day of his shinobi life. It felt as if all the years he had spent under the mentorship of Gai-sensei, who was energy personified, was balanced out by this single request.

First, he decided to move his belongings to a smaller room down the hall. As Sasuke seemed not to be going anywhere and as he knew the medics would be coming and leaving the place occasionally, he needed a more private space away from his "mission".

It was a very small area, compared to his own chambers, which was relatively spacious (though in terms of the Main House and the elders it was still a cramped room). It was meant for overnight guests, but as the irony existed, _he_ would have to sleep in the guest's room because his guest had so passively "claimed" his.

He decided to kill idle time after that by researching about his new ward. It was, after all, under the veneer of domesticity and the tiresome subject at hand, still a mission. Otherwise Hiashi-sama would not have _personally_ approached him, not as an uncle willing to spar with his favorite nephew, but as a clan head appealing to a member's skills.

He remembered how the Battle of Otogakure unfolded; he was stationed to defend the northern borders of the country with his team, and most of his family had spread out in the perimeter of the village to guard against refracted attack units.

He remembered how he had felt a tremendous release of chakra at one point, so pressing and so powerful that it seemed to plug the senses, and it took a large amount of self-control and chakra release to counteract the effect and not weaken at the knees.

Neji had heard of what transpired in the fight, from Team 10 (who led the frontline attack alongside Team 7), and from Lee who had been sent to carry a message to the troops stationed in the area.

There were the rumors of course, about how the two brothers from a formerly prominent shinobi family fought, to the gruesome conclusion of what was a terribly unfortunate twist of brotherly competition.

The Hyuuga family possessed an archive full of documents and family scrolls accessible only to a select few. Located below ground level of the Main House, it took up almost half the entire floor, and was strung with shrouding talismans across the entrance.

From there, Neji read up on unofficial accounts of the demise of the Uchiha, how publicity and the need to cover up the embarrassing fact of a parricide by a single teenage boy proclaimed instead a grave misunderstanding amongst kin at a family gathering that resulted in a very violent brawl.

It was a pathetic cover-up, but it was enough to work; beneath the surface of course, most knew whose fault it was, even if no names were mentioned.

The only member left alive and shaken could only say one word for an entire week following the incident, in between bouts of trauma and fear-induced vomiting:

_Nii-san_. _Nii-san. Nii-san._

Apparently the only member of the Uchiha clan who was not present at the meeting was one Uchiha Sasuke, son of clan head Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Mikoto. The boy, aged eight, had come home late from Academy practice, for which he is known to stay in overtime. He is now being treated for minor injury and will be held for questioning on any information regarding the nature of such a family meeting that should have ended up in the violent eradication of an entire clan.

The public is advised to keep off the turn of Shouhaku Street and the entire length of the Uchiha compound until investigators have concluded their findings. To get to the main highway, a temporary route has been opened to cut across the Konoha Police Station, bypassing 5th and Kashiwagi.

_The violent eradication of an entire clan._

It was so devastating, that it was incredulous.

Neji lowered the chronicle he was reading and leaned against a pillar thoughtfully, trying to imagine what it would have been like for the young boy, elated to report a successful day in school no doubt, returning home only to be mauled by an eerily calm, seemingly logical older brother.

He imagined himself in the crazed brother's place, leering down from a post at the perfect image of a massacre. In his mind, the faces that peered up in silenced agony had eyes that were as pale as his, veining at the temples and at the sides of the face. Some would have marks on their foreheads like his, eyes darkened to a shade of ash gray, the curse seal disabling the Byakugan in death.

He imagined a full moon—silver and ghostly, like a spotlight in the sky, illuminating the similarly pale, lifeless bodies strewn about the Main courtyard.

He imagined standing over the main family, over the clan elders, Hiashi, Kaminari, and Hinata whom he had hated the most. He would be the only Hyuuga left of course, and thus its only head. And he would have successfully outwitted the family system, as it were.

And he wondered whom he would spare, if he would spare anyone at all.

_No._

Immediately he shook his head clear of the reverie, and with it the unnatural agitation that wasn't entirely unpleasant.

What foolish son of a clan head would eradicate his own family _but_ leave its youngest, most promising potential to live? What insane heir would commit parricide in the first place?

He thought about this, vaguely contemplative and somewhat disturbed, even as he emerged from the family library some hours later.

_Indeed the Uchiha are troublesome_, he thought to himself, annoyed at the brother for having done what he did—had the latter killed off the _entire_ clan including Sasuke, or had he remained sane, such a mess would not have resulted.

_But then again, such circumstances resulting from _that_ would not have happened either_, a more logical part of his brain concluded, as he paused to allow several children to cut his path, all armed with blunt kunai, led by a family tutor for their afternoon run.

Several turned over their shoulder to regard him solemnly before resuming their run. Neji took no notice.

_Which goes to say that there would have been no Team 7, which goes to say that the several times I'm sure the Uchiha saved Naruto's life would have been void, and which goes to say that we probably would never have met in battle._

Ryuko greeted him with a quiet bow of respect as he entered the North courtyard, and looking into his open room from below, he could see his cousin standing over and monitoring the work of what looked to be a medic team.

"They have come to check they boy for the first official report, Neji-sama," she explained quietly as they walked towards the room, and Neji's brow lifted slightly at the suffix attached to his name.

"Neji-niisan," Hinata smiled as they drew closer to the room. "They are merely inspecting Sasuke-kun's progress," she explained, waving to the three medic nin in the room. "They are the Godaime's private team."

Neji said nothing, but acknowledged the presence of the medics, watched them in a suppressed sort of curiosity, as they changed chakra tubes, did quiet hand seals to redirect the flow of the body's energy.

Hinata was fidgeting slightly beside him, he could tell from the little movements he saw from the corner of his sight.

"I'm…I'm terribly sorry it had to be your room," she started quietly, and already he could tell she was slowly regressing to her old state of constant nervousness. "I…Father said it would be the best bet, considering that he—Sasuke-kun I mean—he's been…well, experiencing several bouts of unstable energy."

_Those were his circumstances._

He could sense the remnants of her childhood fear of him slowly float to the surface; already Hinata was wringing her hands slightly, in the effort to sink such fear back down.

He said nothing, merely looked past his cousin's shoulder to the medic team taking down notes and examining the Uchiha. He imagined how humiliated Sasuke must be, to be prodded and observed like some interesting specimen, to be confined like the weakest shinobi, to be bound by seals and containment spells.

He wondered what the errant shinobi would have to say about all the attention, if and when the latter woke up. Certainly, as the last Uchiha he would understand the vestiges of politics involved, and would be deeply shamed to have another major house take care of him—

"It _is_ certainly taking him long enough to awaken," Hinata replied, and it was only then that Neji realized he had spoken aloud.

She looked away and leaned across the railing of the hallway that looked out to the courtyard. "We were expecting him to awaken a day after he was brought here, as he would only be dangerous prior to consciousness. Which is probably why the Godaime and Father had no qualms about you being his guardian for such a short time."

Hinata squinted, as if focusing on some far-off object. "Once he gains consciousness, a rebound is easy to put under control. Once he gains consciousness, there won't be a need for all the high-level sealing curses."

Neji looked away from the silent activity in the room and leaned a little beside Hinata on the railings. "And this is because--?"

"Because his own consciousness, Sasuke-kun's, will remain." She pursed her lips as she remembered the tedious, dangerous process of extracting the foreign chakra that steadily suppressed Sasuke's.

He smirked then, and said partly to himself and partly in jest, "Perhaps it is better for him to stay like so, for he would be less of a bother." The Uchiha was very much an annoyance in his drive for revenge, and whatever silly thing that temporarily gave his life meaning.

At this, Hinata whirled around to face him, and he was mildly surprised at the irritation on her typically gentle features.

"Don't say such things, Neji-niisan," she said with a quiet vehemence that Neji was certain his cousin only "acquired" in her harsh training as a chakra surgeon. "There are many people who find Sasuke-kun important. You may not see him as such, but to other people, to other people—"

She broke off and she wavered, as if she remembered something, then, "—to other people, he is worth risking a life for."

And without letting him get in a word edgewise, Hinata turned and strode down the corridor, leaving Neji to blink in mild astonishment.

"Neji-kun? We shall be taking your leave now."

Behind him, as if on cue, the head of the medic team emerged from the room, apparently done with their business. He nodded in acknowledgement and gestured for his team to follow, their report done for the day.

Neji watched them as they descended the stairs, and his gaze followed their exit across the yard and out the North House's gate.

Somewhere beyond the house, he could hear the faint flutter of the house's messenger birds as they returned home to roost.

A figure was hurrying around the first floor, away from the corridor that led to Kaminari's room. She stopped, turned, and bowed deeply to whoever it was, before moving on.

She turned her face upward for a moment, as if aware that she was being watched, and Hanabi directed a very quick, admiring smile at her older cousin before running off.

Sighing, he entered the room and leaned against the partition that separated the inner chamber where Sasuke was resting from the rest of the room.

The medic team had replaced the sealing bandages, and had redrawn the tags that hung over the blazing altar lamps. They also had, to Neji's mild amusement, replaced the sheets.

The body was still, and barely pulsed with life. Under his skin, Uchiha Sasuke was very much alive, but he looked verily like a corpse otherwise, as he did, for the past days.

Hinata had spoken about the compression of Sasuke's chakra; Neji wondered if it was possible to fit two people in a single corporeal matter. Did souls ("flotillas" and "condensed" chakra centers, as Kaminari once said) constrain themselves in physical limitations? And how on earth could the unconscious be more powerful than the conscious?

Barring theory of course; in the realm of the academic nin, this would have been explained thoroughly, but Neji did not care for such fuss.

"You should have never allowed possession," he muttered aloud to his sleeping companion. "You are complicating matters, and barring me from joining my team in missions." _And you do not know, I am sure, of the mess the Kage have to deal with. _

Hissing softly between his teeth in resignation, Neji sat on his usual spot, and brought out two kunai.

Gai-sensei was the most outrageous man in the village (in the entire country, Neji suspected, and doubted he was wrong), but he wasn't jounin-sensei for nothing.

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It was a most vexing day at the meeting, and all she wanted was a long, nerve-loosening drink.

The heads of state she had met with were no worse than children despite their age, she thought. Many were conniving bastards who only looked beyond their own ends with great difficulty. She didn't mind those; after all, the first things shinobi children were taught were suspicion and an instinct for self-survival.

What she could not stand were the heads of state who were so full of themselves and who looked down on her because of the way she looked. It was not so much as their inability to respect her—while they thought she was a hot-headed teenage Hokage (this flattered her very much, needless to say), the moment she opened her mouth o state her opinion, she very much made them reconsider their initial opinions—it was more on the numerous lame, inane attempts to hit on her that set her on edge.

The infinitely annoying Prime Minister of the Lightning Country for instance; the obviously sterile pervert seemed to make it his personal mission all that afternoon, and was intent on it as any Academy student gunning for genin.

Clearly the old man had forgotten her rank in spite of her appearance, even if the grim-faced Suliyam Said had differed to her as a fellow kage in the outright presence of his country leader. The Raikage was clearly displeased and embarrassed with the situation, and had apologized stiffly several times that day.

"I've seen better, old man," she said aloud to herself, uncapping the fat jug of spring sake she always kept under her desk. "Such a lame way of establishing 'political connections.'"

She took a long swig, swung her feet up to the tabletop, and leaned back against her chair. Half-heartedly, she leafed through the neat stack of documents piled in her inbox, skimming through the affairs of the day.

One particular report piqued her interest, and she looked through it with much attention whilst drinking from her sake jug. When she was quite finished, she called for her righthand, who came in a quiet blur only a few seconds after she was called.

Shizune was well-used to her Hokage's penchant for odd hours.

"Tsunade-sama," she said by way of greeting, standing in front of the Hokage's desk.

"I see the medical team has made their first report today on the Uchiha boy," Tsunade leafed through the reports in the envelope once more. She smirked as she read the results. "The brat is certainly is taking his time, eh?"

"Nobody expected him to take so long to awaken," Shizune agreed. "In fact, Hinata-chan has been worrying over the matter for some time now. They all expected him to at least gain consciousness thirty hours after the official start of his rehabilitation."

"Typical Uchiha. Well, it _was_ Orochimaru we were dealing with, inside the boy," Tsunade mused, her face clouding over at the mention of her former teammate. "And he _has_ been severely depleted of his own chakra during the purging. Though I would have expected his air energies to recover--?"

"They are, and at a steady rate, Tsunade-sama. The room Hinata-chan chose was indeed favorable for such energies so much so that the team did not need to put in a conduit to channel chakra." Shizune was about to go into the details and the placements of the altar lamps when Tsunade cut her off.

"About the room, Shizune." Here an ironic, almost mischievous smile crossed the Hokage's face. "Its original resident, I take it, is not very happy with this extension of affairs, is he?"

The younger shinobi sighed softly. "In Ryuko-chan's words, 'It is always best to _not_ mention it in Neji-sama's presence.' I don't suppose Neji-kun expected this delay either, and if one knows him, he has probably partitioned the room between them—"

"If one knows that arrogant child, he shall have moved to a different room _away_ from the Uchiha brat!" Tsunade finished, and clucked her tongue in amusement, and took another swig from her sake jug.

The fine wine burned down her throat and untwisted the knot of nerves around her neck and shoulders, and she let out a long, rejuvenated sigh. Of course she knew several techniques to loosen one's muscles without having to move (being the finest medical genius in the country, and, quite possibly, the hemisphere).

Aah, but sake had its strange, relaxing after-effect that was always a curious mix of lethargy and tingliness, laziness and a weird stirring in her gut that made her want to do things typical of a hot-headed teenage Hokage…

"Interesting," she decided, her voice now a bit slurred. (and she failed to catch Shizune's wary look)

"Do we lift the 'mission' from Neji-kun, Tsunade-sama?" Shizune was now well aware that her boss had not eaten dinner yet, and had taken in an alarming amount of alcohol in lieu of such.

"I don't suppose Gai and his team need any more help in their current missions now, do they?" She tried leafing around for Gai's mission report, but already all the other papers in her desk looked similar, so she gave up.

Shizune quietly picked out the reports. "I don't suppose so, Tsunade-sama—"

"Then let that Hyuuga boy remain as he is. Up to the end of the rehabilitation. " Tsunade failed to notice the surprised look on Shizune's face, which the latter didn't bother to hide.

"Up to the—the end of the—but Tsunade-sama, when, that is, _if_ Sasuke-kun regains consciousness…it's not necessary anymore to—"

"It _is_ Orochimaru we are sort-of, but not-really, anticipating, eh?" Tsunade winked, and leaned farther back into her chair. "And I do believe it's time for the young heirs to his village's bloodlines to establish…'political connections', hmm?"

She snickered into her jug then, much like a teenager. Shizune was shaking her head, knowing her boss to well to not take the latter seriously even in the state of drunkenness.

"But really Shizune," Tsunade sobered up for a bit, "I think the set-up will be good for both of them. They're both geniuses, both top rookies for consecutive years, and both clearly have issues that have not yet been fully resolved. They will learn from one another."

_And there is something I can't quite put a finger on that's telling me that there are things amiss and that this set-up is the best option as far as those boys are concerned._

But of course, she did not say this aloud, because it was something drunken leaders of state would say, and not logical kage who assessed missions behind their desks.

And she was not drunk, by the good Shodai's nose. Shizune was just overreacting, as usual. Tsunade was well-used to her righthand's overly-paranoid streaks, after all.

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He dreamed that night, which was unusual.

He did not dream. Even his unconscious knew it was useless and illogical to dream, so it simply unwound invisibly, so that all he remembered between sleeping and waking up (not necessarily opening his eyes) was a deep, dark chasm.

Tonight, that chasm was streaked with silvery, ghostly light.

He dreamt he was perched in a high place, and the wind was cold against his face. Below him littered the bodies of Kumo nin, all lying facedown on the ground.

In the strange, simultaneous _ in medias res_ that dreams always had, Neji knew he had just won one long battle. He was both in the situation, and observing it from a third-person perspective, and a hurt, a loss, that he had not felt for a long time came in a shuddering wave of vengefulness.

_That's for taking my father_, he thought angrily, feeling the once-familiar savage swell in his chest at the sight of so many dead Kumo shinobi.

They all looked like they simply fell about randomly, but Neji knew (still in the strange versimilistic omniscience of dreams) that beneath their skins, their organs were ruined, and they were all hemorrhaging badly. Small craters dotted the landscape here and there, evidence of the deadly Heavenly Spin.

There was the movement of something small, and he turned. A little girl was sobbing into the body of one of the most badly-wounded Kumo nin, her back turned towards him and her long hair veiling her face.

_It is Fate, you must understand,_ he found his dreamself saying (and this surprised him, as he had turned from that mentality a long time ago) to the girl, who rose slowly and turned her pale, tear-streaked eyes in his direction.

_Neji-niisan._

Hanabi was looking up at him, and to his horror, so was Hinata, in the body of what he thought was a Kumo nin…

And as if an invisible hand flipped the bodies around him over, Neji found himself being stared at by a thousand Hyuuga eyes.

Hanabi was looking up at him now, but her face seemed impossibly near and he could read her lips even in the utter silence of his dream, forming that one word—

_Nii-san. Nii-san. Nii-san._

"Nii-san."

He came to with a sharp gasp, jerking violently from the wall he was leaning on. The evening air chilled him, and cold sweat plastered his hair to the sides of his face. His right hand hurt from gripping the kunai he'd practiced on earlier, and he loosened his hold, and took a deep breath.

_I must have fallen asleep_, he thought, and from the movements of the clouds in the evening sky (these were a sharp gray, lighter by moonlight), it was the middle of the second watch. _I have not slept for the past few days._

Why, his heart was beating as if he were in the midst of a dire combat! Not even in typical fighting situations did he feel such cold dread. There was a reason why Lee called him "Freeze-dried" in the times he had pissed his teammate off with his cold logic.

_There must be some osmotic effect with regard to chakra,_ he thought, making a mental note to speak with Hinata, or at least one of the medic team members about it in the morning. _ For me to have such a vivid dream like that. _

This disconcerted Neji deeply, and he decided not to think about the massacre from the brother's perspective because it was eerily unsettling. There was the barely perceptible thought that scratched at his thought:

_It could have been your family._

Quietly, he took two deep, calming breaths, and pressed two fingers to a pressure point above his right elbow. In a quick moment, he was breathing regularly and his system had calmed down somewhat.

"Nii-san."

_Yes indeed,_ he thought, _ how uncanny, as Hanabi does call me by_—

Neji's head snapped up in alarm, and every muscle he'd loosened sprang to tense and wary attention as he regarded, with Byakugan eyes, the body on the bed.

It breathed deeply, deeper than usual, but the chakra flows still remained the same.

Then he saw the esophagus tighten, and he knew he had not heard the voice in his head.

"Nii-san," it croaked, _Sasuke_ croaked, voice soft and scratchy after many months of disuse. He breathed in the night air through his mouth and gulped it down like water; over his head, an altar lamp's flame flickered and zigzagged as if threatened by a breeze that was ready to put it out.

_It is terribly reactive to chakra in unregulated amounts_, Hinata warned in his head, and Neji hastily reigned in his own, with the discipline of a well-trained jounin. Quietly, he sprang to a crouching position, ready for any sort of action.

But Sasuke remained prone, mouth opening and closing slowly, like a fish out of water, working his lungs for air.

_Or choking on it_, came a voice in Neji's head, warning him, as he saw the air chakra beneath Sasuke's system increase twofold, confusing the rhythm that the sealing jutsu imposed on him.

"Nii-san," he whispered once more, and Neji was too fresh from the dream to allow it to pass smoothly over him.

It was getting stranger and stranger, and frankly Neji did not know what to do; it was possible that Sasuke was delirious, to be muttering such things. It was possible that he was dreaming too, knowing nothing of what he was saying.

But already Sasuke had breathed in a shuddering sigh, and had slipped back to unconsciousness. His body relaxed; his chakra system had righted itself after a very quick moment of instability and now the altar lamps burned a straight, steady flame, the water in the bowl flat like a mirror.

Neji relaxed his shoulders, very much awake after that short, very surreal sequence. He wondered if the medic team had known that Sasuke would awaken, and perhaps it was just a matter of bad timing that they came early the day before.

He wondered if he should tell them about it, and if he could file for a report (it being an "official" mission after all) and if he could rejoin his team the next morning.

_For now, the best course of action is to keep light watch_, he thought. He was quite sure it was the last of this ridiculous guard watch mission, and that perhaps he could resume training himself.

The irony of it only struck him the moment he leaned back against the wall again to return to his position.

_He would be dangerous only prior to consciousness_, Hinata had said. Glaring at the body balefully as if it had caused him to do something embarrassing and untypical of a well-respected jounin, Neji counted the watch rotations in his head before sunrise.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

(1) chakra release – the "Kai!" that jounin often perform to neutralize the effects of a particularly strong genjutsu, or similar imposing jutsu. Sakura, Kakashi, Gai and several accomplished shinobi do this to counteract Kabuto's sleeping illusion at the tail-end of the Chuunin exam scenario.

(2) Pronounced "Sa-EE-d" as in Edward Said. :3 Sorry, nerd's allusion. This is very negligible btw. I suspect the Lighting Country people should have Arabic names, as the ambassador who nabbed little Hinata had such a name.

(3) I am so glad for this month-long vacation! I can go back to writing stuff again, "effusing" as a friend would say, without having to worry about sacrificing work or some such "important" matter. And I'm kind of glad the story shifted towards getting back Sasuke again too; as is obvious, I'm working with what the canon is presently showing. In my story, it's not just Orochimaru's sentience that the chakra team has had to extract, because if I've read forum spoilers correctly, Orochimaru is planning to a.) implant the hachibi onto Sasuke, the jinchuuriki he's acquired as a member of the Akatsuki, and b.) move house into the boy's body as well, making _him_ the head of the control center so to speak, with the ability to control the hachibi's powers and redirect the drawbacks onto Sasuke and his body. What a sneaky leech. So yeah, I'll be working my way around that.

(4) I'd love to hear what you have to say. :3 I usually x-post this to my writing journal, but you may very well mail me for other comments. Please drop a note if you think this was okay. Thanks!


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